Book Review: Goblins in the Castle

June 28, 2017

It’s a very interesting thing, rediscovering a book which you had no idea had such an influence over your life. I first read Goblins in the Castle by Bruce Coville when I bought it at a book fair in elementary school. The cover and title really pulled me in and the description both intrigued and frightened me. I remember taking a while to even start reading it because I was a little scared of it (funny to think back on that now). Once I did, though, I really fell in love with it and I’m sure I finished it rather quickly. The strange thing though is that for some reason I would always lose the book, finding it random times throughout the years and then losing it again. So, even though I had loved it, I never read it a second time and practically forgot about it.

Twenty-two years later, I stumbled across it on Amazon in a random search. I knew the cover in an instant and I immediately remembered my old fear and fascination with the book. Since I can’t seem to find my original copy again, I purchased it on Amazon and began reading it. Having finished it a week later, I am absolutely in awe of how much this book influenced me. Writing in particular. I found that things that I had written over a decade later had many similarities to this book that I had practically forgotten but still lived on in the back of my subconscious. Interests of mine that I didn’t remember the origin of such as goblins, castles with hidden passages, and underground cities all came from here.

All in all, I’ve greatly enjoyed my time revisiting this memory from my childhood. I’ll definitely keep a better grasp on this copy because I want it to be around to read many more times and share with my daughter. Then again maybe this book has a mind of its own and will reappear to me when I next need it.